Radiator unit.



G. E. WHEELER.

RADIATOR UNIT.

APPLIUATIOH I'ILBD APB. 3. 1913.

Patented June 2, 1914" :the desired eross-sortional form.

no srarss PATENT OFFICE.

GARDNER E. 'HEELER. OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSINOR TU THE ENGLISH & MERSICK CDMPANY, 0l? NEVI HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATIUN 0F 00h15l NE GTIEUT.

aanleren Unir.

insiemi.

Specification of Letters Patent.

' Patented June 2, 1914.

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that. l, GARDNER iE. lllnnnnnn. a citizen of the United States7 residing in Wen' Haven. county of New Haven. and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Radiator Units, ot which the follmving is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to cellular or honeycomh radiators of the type commonly usedV for coolingr automobile engines. and it has special reter'ence to a radiator core or section composed of a plurality7 of elongated cellular units grouped together in such a manner as to create between them a plurality of water passages.

lll/lore particularly, niv .improvements re late to a construction in which the several units have shouldered or odset portions by which they are spaced from each other at the front and rear edges to present the aforesaid Water passages, thereby 'avoiding the use ot the Well known spacing Wires, and wherein the air passages of each unit are defined hv plaits or fins bent up from the respective side Walls of the unit, the tins oi" one Wall alternating with those of the oppo` site Wall.

l'n automobile radiators of the :so-called Wireless type having the above mentioned alternate arrangement of the plaits. itl has heretofore heena very diiiicult matter to place the opposite side Walls in such relation to each other that the plaits o't'one wall will so coperate with those of the opposite wall as to present air passages having exactly The appearance of the radiator is verv much enhni'iced it all ot the air passages are accuratelv uniform in shape and size, out in the pas( it has heen a very diiticult matter to obtain this result. as there has heen no means 'For indicating Whether or not the opposite side `Walls of each unith ave the proper location with respect; to each other. When the relative adjustment oi the two opposite sido walls is left entirely to thix eye of the operator it will be found ver)v often that the air spa es oi the unit are not uniform. and in attempting to manufacture a radiator with air passages of square crosssection. the displacement of' one of the side walls ol a unit with reference. to the opposite sido wall will cause all of the passages of4 thel unit to he of oblong instead of square cross-section, and the adjacent passages will diiier in size.

The rincariy object of my invention is to provide means which eliminates the above drawback and at the same time enables the 'free edges of the plaits or tins to bereadily soldered to the opposite side wall of the unit at the shouldered or otset lront' and rear edges thereof, whereby the front and rear surfaces ot the radiator will each present an evtrernelj,7 uniform group of air passages having continuous rectangular mouths.

To these and other ends. Athe invention consists in the novel features and combina tions of parts to he hereinafter described and claimed.

Tn the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 is an enlarged fragmentary edge View of a radiator unit embodying my improvements..

after the same has been dipped in solder. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of a portion of Fig. l, Fig'. 3 is an edge view similar to Fig. l showing the appearance of the unit before soldering. Fig. 4 is a fragmentary view of one of the side Walls of the unit looking from the inside. Fig. 5 is a section on line 5-5 oi Fig. 2. Fig. G is a section on line 6 6 of Fig. 2, and Figi. 7 is a section on line 7? ot Fig. /l.

Referring tothe drawing and particularly to Fig. 3, 10 is a. sheet metal Wall constituting one of the side walls of the unit and 1l is the opposite side Wall. ln the form shown, the walls 10 and 1l are formed as parts of the same strip, which is doubled over on itself. as shown at l2, but this feuture is immaterial -to the invention. wall l0 is heut up at intervals to present transverse plaits lfrand the wall 11 is hent up to present similar plaits 14. These two sets of plaits are adapted to he arranged in alternatingr fashion. as shown in Fig.' 3, so

as to present in conjunction with the side walls and end Walls of the unit. a plurality of air passages 15 extendingr horizontally from the front edgeot the unit to the rear edge thereof. The construction of the rear edge of tho unit is the same as that of the front edge and l have not consideredit neccssari7 to illustrate both edges.

The iva l0 is provided with a shouldered portion or offset 10 extending along the edge thereof and the wall 1l is provided The.

^ ,lar (preferaby with a similar shouldered portion or offset 11a. These offsets extend from the unit in opposite directions so as to enlarge the front and rear edges of the unit, whereby a plurality of vertical water spaces will be formed between adjacent units when such units are grouped together side by side in .a manner well understood in the art. The plaits 13, 14 are of uniform Width throughout their length and the main portions of the plaits 13 extend from the wall 10 into abutment with the main portion of the Wall 11, whereas the plaits 14 of the Wall 11 extend across to and support the main part of the Wall 10 in a similar manner.

In accordance with my invention, I provide mea-ns for facilitating the manufacture of the unit by furnishing the offset portions 10, 11a respectively, with teats or projections 10b and 11b respectively, adapted to register with the plaits or tins 14 and 13 respectively, when the side walls are properly assembled relatively to each other, as shown in Fig. 3. The teats or projections 10'J are situated at the edge of the offset- 10a at points midway of the plaits 13, and the teats or projections 11b are similarly vformed and located relatively to the wall 11 and the .plaits 14. By this construction it is an easy matter forV the operator to place the Walls 1() and 11 in such relative positions that the air pamages 15 will be of uniform cross-sec# tion throughout the length of the unit. If desired, the portions of the plaits 13, 14 which abut. the main portions of the Walls 11 and 10 respectively (i. e. those portions other than the `otfset port-ions 11a and 10a) may be engaged in seats 16 which are created by providing the corresponding side Wall with pairs of projections 17. ln the form shown, the teats or projections 1t)b are formed by pletely across the width of the offset portion of the side wall. and the projections 17 are formed by indenting the metal from the same side. The projections 17 are shown as consisting' of comparatively short ribs. but l do not limit myself to this feature, as small circular bosses or similar projections will serve to forni seats for the free edges of the, fins or plaits on the main portions. of the side walls adjacent. the offsets 10a, 11a.

'lhe bottoms of the seats 16 are in line with the apices of the teats or projections 10", 1l", so that the straight edge of each plait 13 oi' 14 may have a full continuous bea-ring on the opposite wall of the unit. In

this manner, the cellular structure is given a maximum amount of strength to resist collapse or buckling. n

' The small teats or rejections 10b, 11b not only facilitate the atfjustment of the opposite side walls of the unit in such a manner as v to present air assages of uniform rectangusquare) cross-section, but

indentation of themetal comthey also improve the appearance of the mouth of the air passage by giving it a continuous outline. hen the unit has been lassembled in the manner shown in Fig. S,

the front and rear edges are dipped insolfler, in the manner well understood in the art, and the solder bath will imite the plaits of one wall to the opposite Wall, thereby completing' the unit. The solder will generally fill in the gap between the teats 10b,

-11b and the fins 14, 13, thereby giving the edge of the unitfa nicely finis-lied appearance. It Will therefore be understood that by iny invention I provide a single means for insuring uniformity of the air passages as to size and shape, and for facilitating the soldering operation. As I the teats or projections 10", 11b may be formed by suitable dies during 'the bending up of the plaits i a plaiting machine, it is possible of course, to locate such teats or projections very accurately and uniformly With reference 'to the plaits.

lWithout limiting myself to the precise construction shown, I claim:

1, A radiator unit, comprising opposite sheet inet-al side Walls having their front odge portions offsetin opposite directions to increase the Width of the front edge of the unit, relative to the main portion of such unit, a series of plaits ext-ending from each side Wall into abutment with the main portion of the opposite wall, said plaits being alternately arranged and extending across `said offset portions at the front edge of the unit, and being of substantially uniform width throughout their length, and inwardly extending teats or projections bent up from said. offset edge portions. and arranged transversely of the latter in line with the extremities of the plaits at the front edge of the unit, and in approximate Contact with said plaits, whereby said teats .indicate the proper relative adjustment of the side walls in assembling, and facilitate the formation of continuous months for the air passages when the parts of the unit are soldered together; substantially as described.

2. A radiator unit, conipiising opposite sheet metal side walls having their front edges offset in opposite directions to increase the width of the front edge of the unit, plaits extending from each side wall into contact with thc main portion of the opposite side wall. said plaits being alternately arranged and being of uniform width throughout their length so as to present substantially straight free ,wflges, said piaits extending across the offset edge portions of the side Walls, teats or projections extending completely' across said offset edge poi'- tions, and projecting' inwardlyY from said offset portions into approximate lContact with the free edges of the plaits at the 'front edge of the unit, and projections on the' bearing on the opposite side Wall; subsmn- 10 main portion of each side Wall arranged on I telly as described.

opposite Sides of each plait, and forming in witness whereof, have hereunto set between them :L seat for the free edge of 1 .my hand on the 2nd dey of April, 1913.

Suolo pleit,4 said seatsfbeiegdoeaeed adja GARDNER E WHEELER cenit Sald tents o1' proyeotlons, and havlng Il their bottom portions in the plane of the; YVtoesses:

apces of said teats or projections, Where- HENRY E. ROCKWELL, by the free edge of each plait has e ful) M. OLIVE WILLIAMS.

@www ed eme ement :may be obtained foar five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents- Wmshinmom, Il. (2. z 

